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01/04/2019 10:00 AM EDT

By ZACH MONTELLARO (zmontellaro@politico.com; @ZachMontellaro)


Editor's Note: This edition of Morning Score is published weekdays at 10 a.m. POLITICO Pro Campaigns subscribers hold exclusive early access to the newsletter each morning at 6 a.m. To learn more about POLITICO Pro's comprehensive policy intelligence coverage, policy tools and services, click here.
QUICK FIX
The 116th Congress is here, and there is no way to avoid the 2020 cycle now. Buckle up.

- A handful of battleground Democrats voted for someone other than Speaker Nancy Pelosi for the gavel. Despite big midterm losses, Republicans are still hoping this is a winning message.

- One of the best stops for any Democratic hopeful might be Rachel Maddow's studio. Campaign strategists and communication experts told POLITICO that a stop on MSNBC primetime could provide a key boost to campaigns.

- An early 2020 House primary marker? A liberal think tank put out polls poking at Rep. Kathleen Rice (D-N.Y.) and Seth Moulton (D-Mass.).

Happy Friday! Resolve a debate: Are members of Congress like Reps. Conor Lamb (D-Pa.) and Troy Balderson (R-Ohio) freshmen because this is their first full term, or are they not because they won a special election and served last Congress? Email me your thoughts at zmontellaro@politico.com or DM me at @ZachMontellaro.

Email the great Campaign Pro team at sbland@politico.com, dstrauss@politico.com, jarkin@politico.com, and lbarron-lopez@politico.com. Follow them on Twitter: @PoliticoScott, @DanielStrauss4, @JamesArkin and @lbarronlopez.

Days until the 2019 election: 305

Days until the 2020 election: 669
THE TOPLINES
You may have missed it, but Pelosi regained the speaker's gavel. Her return to the speakership was opposed by some Democrats, as Republicans tried to make hay out of it in the midterms. How successful was that strategy? Democrats picked up a net of 40 seats, so you be the judge.

Still, a handful of freshmen Democrats voted against Pelosi: Reps. Anthony Brindisi (D-N.Y.), Jason Crow (D-Colo.), Joe Cunningham (D-S.C.), Jared Golden (D-Maine), Lamb, Ben McAdams (D-Utah), Max Rose (D-N.Y.), Mikie Sherrill (D-N.J.) and Abigail Spanberger (D-Va.). Rep. Elissa Slotkin (D-Mich.) voted present, while Rep. Jeff Van Drew (D-N.J.) originally voted "no" and was later recorded as voting "present."

A number of battleground Democrats backed her. Rep. Gil Cisneros (D-Calif.) said on the trail he would oppose Pelosi and signed a letter saying he wouldn't vote for her, but relented after a cadre of anti-Pelosi rebels won some rule changes. Some other Democrats who were more squishy on leadership changes on the trail ended up backing her, like Reps. Angie Craig (D-Minn.) and Andy Kim (D-N.J.). The most interesting vote: Rep. Kendra Horn (D-Okla.), who had perhaps the biggest surprise win in a red district, voted for Pelosi.

Despite the big losses in the midterms, Republicans still believe tying Democrats to Pelosi can be a winning strategy. The NRCC launched its first ads of the cycle, sending text messages in the districts of 15 representatives who backed Pelosi, while the Washington Examiner's David Drucker reported that both the CLF and America Rising PAC placed trackers around the Hill to grill new Democrats on their vote for speaker.
IN THE TRENCHES
PRESIDENTIAL BIG BOARD - Former Maryland Gov. Martin O'Malley is out for 2020, writing in the Des Moines Register that he isn't running again - but that he hopes former Rep. Beto O'Rourke does: "I believe the new leader who can best bring us together and turn us around to create that better American future, is Beto O'Rourke." POLITICO's David Siders wrote that the endorsement could provide a boost to O'Rourke in Iowa.

- There's a handful of potential 2020 contenders hailing from California, but the Golden State's senior senator is supporting none of them. Dianne Feinstein said former Vice President Joe Biden is her preferred presidential candidate, per POLITICO's Burgess Everett.

- Former Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe kicked up the latest round of speculation with an op-ed in The Washington Post, where he called on Democrats to "maintain our credibility with a pledge of results that are honest and achievable." He also wrote he hasn't decided if he'll run.

- Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) is dissolving her joint fundraising committee ahead of her presidential run, per CNBC's Brian Schwartz.

A MADDOW WORLD - One on the hottest spots for Democratic presidential hopefuls will be MSNBC host Rachel Maddow's show. POLITICO's Jason Schwartz and David talked to campaign strategists and media experts, who tell them that an appearance on primetime could help boost a bid. "People will break the political speed limit to be a guest on her show if they're seriously considering seeking the Democratic nomination in 2020," Antjuan Seawright, a South Carolina-based Democratic strategist who worked for Clinton 2016, told the pair.

PRIMARY WATCH - A signal for who liberal activists could look to primary: Data for Progress, a liberal think tank, put out a pair of polls hinting at internal weakness for Rice in NY-04 and Moulton in MA-06, published in HuffPost and The Daily Beast, respectively. Sean McElwee, one of the co-founders of the think tank, also told The Daily Beast that the group would poll other Democrats, including Rep. Henry Cuellar in TX-28.

NC-09, CONTINUED - Republican Mark Harris met with North Carolina board of election investigators, while continuing to argue he should be certified the winner. "We don't believe that the number of ballots in question would change the outcome of this election," he said, per The Charlotte Observer's Brian Murphy, Rashaan Ayesh and Carli Brosseau. "We think there should be no reason to doubt the legitimacy of the outcome." Harris' lawyers also filed a lawsuit seeking to force the certification. The Observer's Ely Portillo and Jim Morrill reported that uncertainty over the seat could leave it open for months.

- Former Rep. Robert Pittenger (who lost to Harris in the primary) slammed McCrae Dowless, the independent contractor who worked for Harris and who is at the center of the election fraud scandal, while saying he was sure there was illegal ballot "harvesting" happening. "It was so clear it was pay for play - you pay me and I'll go get you votes," he told Spectrum News, recounting why he had never worked with Dowless. "I mean this man worked for Democrats and Republicans. He's a political prostitute. He'll work for anybody, it didn't make any difference, just pay him." Pittenger was hesitant to directly criticize Harris, saying "let's get to the facts" first.

HE'S IN - Republican Lt. Gov. Tate Reeves announced his bid for Mississippi governor. Current Republican Gov. Phil Bryant is term limited, and Reeves is considered a favorite to win the nomination. The Mississippi Clarion Ledger's Giacomo Bologna reports that he's already raised $5 million.

- Republican Dean Browning, who narrowly lost his party's nomination in PA-07, said he is running again in the district to challenge Rep. Susan Wild (D-Pa.), via The Morning Call's Laura Olson.

NOT FOR ME - Now former Rep. Trey Gowdy said he's not getting back into politics. "I will keep the relationships, but I will not be on the ballot ever again," he told The Greenville News' Eric Connor. Gowdy was also apparently not a huge fan of his time in office, telling Connor that "If I knew then what I know now, I wouldn't have run for Congress in the first place."

NO BIG SURPRISES - In news you probably already knew: When asked on CNN's New Day if he's running for reelection, Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) answered "yes" but said "don't take it as a formal announcement." Similarly, Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) told TIME's Tessa Berenson that her "intention" was to run for reelection, but that she hasn't made a final decision.

CODA - QUOTE OF THE DAY: "People in this business like attention and you get a lot of attention as governor," outgoing California Gov. Jerry Brown told The New York Times.

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